It's a live-wire gap between respect and ridicule. Take Thailand's Lifeaudio for example. The abundance of gleaming gold on their cable connectors, footers and rack hardware could seem garish. Yet we can't deny the quality of production and obsessive care which obviously go into it. Their stands for monitor speakers seem beyond overkill but their machining is undoubtedly top notch.
What's the appropriate response to seeing such kit in a post, on a social media or other webpage? Cynics will invoke the nouveau riche with more money than sense and taste. Those who come from other luxury goods will applaud the transfer of visual and material indicators to high-end audio. After all, if Bentley and Bugatti cars can do it, why not audio? Different cultures have different responses to gold. Heavy metal is its own audience. I'm admittedly more cynical on the matter than applauding it. As a member of the press, it's simply my job to keep our audience informed and entertained. And at the very least, this counts as visual entertainment, does it not?
Lifeaudio's website
